Lokal Team

Lokal’s journey, which began in 2012, continues true to its essence in bringing forth local artwork and craftsmanship. To value timeless beauty, sustainable design and most importantly, to nurture real community, are the things at the forefront of our activity. We would like to tell you more about who we are;

Katja Hagelstam

Lokal’s Founder and Curator

Katja is the original founder and heart of Lokal. She looks after the aesthetic entirety, photographs all the exhibitions and objects, and also plays a big part in Lokal’s daily operations.

“Art can help identify feelings; it touches and with it we can be touched. In handwork, a handprint is like a literal touch from one person to another; the craftsman has touched every stitch. Through art we can touch each other.”

Katja always attracts surprising, wonderful and funny encounters, both at home and at Lokal. She relaxes by meditating and cleaning.

katja.hagelstam@lokalhelsinki.com

Katja Soila

Lokal’s Managing Director  & CEO

Katja acts as Lokal’s CEO with particular emphasis on Lokal’s comprehensive administration, finances, and the over-all functionality of various day-to-day operations.

“I tend to observe. Art enables us to see more dimensions of the world, ourselves and each other. It can take us to places. Crafting by hand always imprints the object, in which beauty lies.”

Katja likes things in a harmonious kind of order. She strives to find her surrounded by nature and gardening as often as possible.

katja.soila@lokalhelsinki.com 

Kati Ruohomäki

Lokal Gallery Producer and Co-ordinator

Kati is a visual artist and an astrologer and has been taking good care of Lokal Gallery’s day-to-day operations for several years now.

“For me art is like breathing, the way I am in life; how I think, how I move, how I deal with all matters and feelings. Sometimes I like it more, sometimes I fight against it, but the essence of that way of being seems to always stay.”

Kati is a Nordic walking activist by heart, and feels a deep connection to all-white moose.

kati.ruohomaki@lokalhelsinki.com

Ananya Tanttu

Lokal’s Media Producer 

Ananya is a photography and moving image artist. Within Lokal, she focuses on managing Lokal’s media and producing original video and editorial content. 

“Doing things with sincerity, from the heart, and by hand, seems like something vital to me. Creative expression, especially when given space and sensory form, is what silently connects us to one another, even in the midst of incessant noise.”

When not on the road (she moves around a lot) or at her portable office, Ananya can be found in natural water bodies, foraging in forests, making things, contemplating.

Piëtke Visser

Lokal’s Visual Brand and Communication Designer

Pietke is an awarded creative director and communication designer, and has shaped and contributed to Lokal’s visual identity ever since our foundation year.

“I believe design is visual optimism. It tries to show us better ways and gives us chances to improve. Done alone none of this is much fun, it is the possibility to work in a like-minded community that is valuable and truly rewarding.”

Piëtke loves naming colours, and sees it as a limitless pursuit that delves into memories and engages all the senses. In that same vein, she believes in the restorative power of seasonal fruit, in particular the mangoes and peaches from her grandmother’s garden.

Hanni Koroma

Lokal’s Interior Architect and Exhibition Designer

Hanni is an interior architect, and has her own studio in Kruununhaka. Hanni has designed the premises of Lokal, the colour scheme and does the exhibition architecture.

“I strive for beauty and harmony. We do get used to ugliness, but beauty always excites us.”

Hanni makes dandelion capers, spruce cone marmalade, and potatoes in folded lady’s mantle leaves.